Problem of Evil

The Story, The Possibility of Evil is a truly interesting story that demonstrates the evil of a community that seems almost perfect. This story demonstrates how there is probably no place on Earth that evil has not reached. The story bases itself on a small suburban town and the people that live there. The reader meets Miss Strangeworth who is a sweet little lady that smiles to everyone during the day and starts conversations, but by the time she gets home she starts writing letters revealing secrets and unpleasant facts of her neighbours and fellow townspeople and

The work’s of Hick and Johnson both refer to the problem of evil. The problem of evil brings up questions of how God can exist and allow evil things to happen to humankind. God is supposedly an all-powerful and all-knowing being. Thus he should have the power to stop evil. Johnson in particular questions how God could allow something like an infant dying in a burning building to happen. He ponders how God can be all-good if he allows this and other terrible tragedies to happen.

Ten children are killed every day in the United States by guns; people are murdered senselessly; Columbine High School; Over one-third of middle school children in Cascade County have used illegal drugs and over one-half have tried alcohol; innocent people in foreign countries are being wiped out (Kosovo); The Holocaust; Hiroshima; Vietnam; poverty, starvation and oppression in third world countries; Capitalism; environmental decay and neglect; the media; Oklahoma City; the uni-bomber; earthquakes, fires, tornadoes, hurricanes, volcanoes, airplane crashes; domestic/child abuse; disease, birth defects and mental disorders. Why?Why?Why?… The question never changes and is asked over and over and over and

Has anyone ever noticed when a pencil is put into a clear glass full of water the pencil looks bent? As most know the pencil is not really bent, your eyes are deceiving the way people actually see things. In The Possibility of Evil, a mystery short story, by Shirley Jackson, she uses parable like qualities from third person omniscient, irony, a free-floating sense of depravity, a gothic house, and a turn about in events to show that even if you are looking through a clear glass, everything is not always what it seems. Jackson shows this by using symbolism and themes: Do not judge a book by its cover and looks can be deceiving.

In the Possibility of evil this book has very many twist and turns all through out this story . With revenge and karma just around the corner. In the Possibility of Evil by shirley jackson it is clear that what goes around comes around comes because she wrote mean letter to her neighbors, which caused them to cut down and destroy her garden; but she was also mean and rude to the kids in her neighborhood. The counter claim in this story is treat other the way you want to be treated. In this story the theme is what goes around comes around, and karma coming back at you.

Buddhism and Jainism both believe in the concept of karma as the force responsible for all of the suffering in existence. Both also acknowledge the absoluteness of karma and its unavoidable effect on the beings who are subject to the cycle of birth and death. But they differ in the concept of the nature of karma and how it impacts the various beings. According to the beliefs held by Jainism, karma is not only a result of a being’s actions, but a real substance that becomes attached to each jiva, or self, while it takes part in many actions throughout the course of its existence. This karma, which is made up of tiny particles, binds to the being until it is cleansed through the observation of the morals and practices of the Jain religion, including pure conduct and severe austerities. There are two types of karma within Jainism, one that is known as “harming” karmas and there is “non-harming” karmas. The karmas can be fully liberated through moksha alone. In Buddhism, as in Hinduism, karma is a consequence of one’s

A common phrase that many people learn in their youth is “never judge a book by its cover.” This figure of speech is usually meant to teach others to give something a chance before immediately dismissing it; however, the phrase can also take on a darker interpretation and be used as a warning to not trust everything that meets the eye. Miss Adela Strangeworth in Shirley Jackson’s “The Possibility of Evil” lives up to the dark irony of that phrase as the story unfolds. Jackson uses irony throughout many elements of her story to illustrate how evil can be masked by an amiable façade.

In this paper, I will break apart J. L. Mackie’s stern defense of the logical problem of evil, which he uses to suggest the God does not exist. I will attempt to defend the notion that both God and evil, in the form of human creation, can exist in the world by way of suggesting that freewill is the answer. Furthermore, I will strengthen the argument for freewill against Mackie’s defense, which suggests that the argument of freewill also compromises the Omni-three nature of God. In part, I will back freewill by using Mackie’s own logic against him. In its totality, I will build up a strong force against the logical problem of evil, leaving room for both the existence of human formed evil and God in this world under the

One of the oldest dilemmas in philosophy is also one of the greatest threats to Christian theology. The problem of evil simultaneously perplexes the world’s greatest minds and yet remains palpably close to the hearts of the most common people. If God is good, then why is there evil? The following essay describes the problem of evil in relation to God, examines Christian responses to the problem, and concludes the existence of God and the existence of evil are fully compatible.

The core belief of the two religions is ‘Karma’, which means ‘action’. Buddhism and Hinduism both originated in India, therefore, some of its core beliefs are similar, however, the way the two religions perceive their core beliefs are different. In Hinduism, Karma could be defined as a process of cause and effect. The actions of people have an effect on them somewhere in their life (Tambyah). According to this concept, the good deeds of a person will take him to a good future or vice versa. Karma has also a strong link with the moral actions and intentions of a person. In this regard, if a person does well with a wrong intention, he or she will definitely get wrong effects in the future due to their bad intentions. On the other hand, Karma in Buddhism is commonly known as a‘virtue’. Similar to

The Buddhist doctrine of karma ("deeds", "actions"), and the closely related doctrine of rebirth, are perhaps the best known, and often the least understood, of Buddhist doctrines. The matter is complicated by the fact that the other Indian religious traditions of Hinduism and Jainism have their own theories of Karma and Reincarnation. It is in fact the Hindu versions that are better known in the West. The Buddhist theory of karma and rebirth are quite distinct from their other Indian counterparts.

In Buddhism, Karma has two forms; mental karma and deed karma (Encyclopedia of Religion 266). The two forms both abide by the belief that good or bad actions yield good or bad results. Mental karma is governed by what a person thinks. If a person thinks impure or malicious thoughts, they will build up bad karma during his life, and for pure thoughts, good karma is built up. Deed karma refers to the actions performed physically by a person. As with mental karma, deed karma is the culmination of good karma and bad karma resulting from one’s actions.

If we are living in a world that was created by a perfect being, why are there imperfect aspects? If this ultimate being or creator (I will say God for purpose of this paper) is fundamentally good and moral, and is even unable to create evil, then how did evil come to be in the life we are living? According to the problem of evil, if there is a God, there is no evil. But because there is evil in the world, the conclusion can be drawn that there is no God (Sober). At first glance, this argument is perfectly logical. However, this claim may be reversed. For if one is indicating that there is evil in this world, they are believing that there has been a “line” drawn somewhere to separate the good and the bad. This “line” is known by many, if I dare say all, yet nobody actually determined what was considered bad. The reversal of the problem of evil can lead to the argument of God and evil both existing in the same world. But, it seems as though if there were a perfect God, there would be no evil in the world, as He would not be able to create it or He would be moral enough to see it happening and stop it. Can we really live in a world that contains evil, which was created by a perfect God that is not capable of creating evil/capable of stopping it? This question may even lead into the following question, assuming that God and evil do exist together: if there is a God, why is there (allowed) evil in the world? However, before we are even able to begin to understand why there is

Notions of good and evil appear in every social sphere of influence and each serve an influential role in how humanity interacts within itself. Shakespearean works often rely on a wrongful act being corrected, a specific moral dilemma that often revolves around themes of death. Shakespeare’s tragedy ‘Hamlet’, akin to Macbeth in tragic scope, explores the idea of morality as well as how it impacts the lives of each character, but is Hamlet a play about the conflict between good and evil? Hamlet delves into the notions good and evil by focusing on the spheres of politics, personal relationships and religion. Claudius’ rise to power in Denmark, as well as how he chose to use his power and the end of his rule are depictions of political and

In Buddhism, karma is cause and effect, or reaction and action. By thinking, speaking and acting wisely (so as to reduce suffering) we cause effects that produce happiness; by thinking, speaking and acting unwisely (so as to produce suffering) we cause effects that produce